How Do You Know Yourself To Be A Mason?

done and you can tell whether you have stood faithfully and honestly by the three great dogmas of Masomy , Brotherly Love , Relief , and Truth . To be a true Mason , therefore , asks for a large amount

of what habit , association and inclination would call sacrifice , on your part . If the lessons of Masonry have not succeeded in removing these rough excrescences from your moral character , you still remain in the quarry , the rough ashlar you was when you first were tried by line , plumb ,

level , and square . If yon have not fitted geometrically into the place designed for you , in the living temple—of which yon are presumed to form a part—then rest assured you are not a Mason . If the charity which should flow out from your heart to all the world , prompting to works

of friendship , morality and brotherly love , be absent , or at least flows in a sluggish unwilling stream , then rest assured you are not a Mason . If tho appeal of suffering aud sorrow falls upon your ears heedlessly and creates no thrill of relieving response , then rest assured you aro no-. Mason .

If you , in thought , are not frequently led to a profound contemplation of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man , together with your individual work of making the fraternal bonds of the latter still stronger , then rest assured you are no Mason . If your Lodge and the

symbolic labours therein enacted from time to time , havo for you no interest , no endearment , no drawing or impelling power , then rest assured you are no Mason . Jf yon find not within yonr breast a strong ambition to make the world better , because your mother gave you birth that you might

form a part of this great world of seething , struggling humanity , then you have failed in your mission and are nofc a Mason . And , finally , if you have not sought to place your hand in that of One who is tho Great Leader of the hosts of earth from the Babylon of sin to the pure

Jerusalem of Goodness , Charity , and Truth , rest assured you are not a Mason . If not , why not ? Ah ! brother , beloved , it is not yet too late for you—still blind—to be led into a better living , and as you thus introspect , listen to tho voice of your better principle , saying :

" I will bring the blind by a way that they know not . I will lead them in paths they have nofc known , I will make darkness light before them and crooked things straight . These things will I do unto them and will nofc forsake them . "—The American Tyler .

Disinterested Friendship.

DISINTERESTED FRIENDSHIP .

rpHERE are friends and friends . Friendship is a poet ' s JL word . It is rythmical and sweet . Around it cluster mosfc beautiful figures . From ifc is exhaled most intoxicating perfumes . Its sound falls upon the ear as a chord from the celestial choir . Ifc is . however , too often a

lost chord . Floating out upon the calm evening air we hear ifc and strain every nerve to catch its sweetness , but it was of Heaven , and to Heaven it has returned , and is lost to us . Friendship is a priceless jewel , and when found should be treasured as such .

There are grades in friendship . Very little of it is from a purely disinterested motive . Professions aro cheap . There is nothing more counterfeited than friendship . It is

put on aud off as a mask . Policy in all affairs of life too often leads to a masking of friendship . Friends who will stick to you through thick and thin , through good report and evil report , through adversity , as well as prosperity ,

are rare . Masonic friendship oughfc to be pure and disinterested . No selfish motive should control our actions , but alas ! such is nofc always the case . Wo are too apt to forget tho tessellated floor upon which we have trodden . We leave

Masonry behind the tyled door , safely deposited iu the Archives of tho Lodge , and mingle with the world uninfluenced by the principles of equality , brotherly lovej friendship and all the galaxy of virtues we talked of so glibly in tho Lodge .

Disinterested friendship , which is the only quality that is of any value , is Masonic friendship . It will go on foot , and even out of the way , to serve a brother in need . It will bend the knee before the Grand Architect of the

Universe , imploring a blessing upon our brother ' s head . It will treasure the words confided to us in a faithful breast . It will stretch forth the hand to aid a brother in his efforts , and to save him from falling . It will whisper words of good counsel in his ear and warn hira of approach-

Disinterested Friendship.

ing danger . A brother ' s welfare will be remembered , nofc forgotten . His friendship will be sought outside the Lodgeroom , not only in it . Masonry is a society of friendships . They are formed in such a manner that they ought to be strong and lasting .

The Lodge is a place for social enjoyment and montal and moral improvement . We meet with congenial spirits and pass most delightful seasons together . How muoh of this enjoyment is real ? How much of real brotherly feeling is there in tho grasp of tho hand ? How many times havo

wo seen a Brother bending under a load of adversity , and by a word or deed endeavoured to relievo him ? If we could only break the chrysalis of selfishness that so completely envelops us perhaps we would perform more acts of pure , disinterested friendship than we do . Then

would be the fall and complete enjoyment of our professions . Wo all possess more ability to aid our fellow-men than we think we do . Wo can do a great deal if we only try . The trouble is , however , we are content to let every fellow

take care of himself . If he succeeds we praise him and say , " I told you so . " If he fails— " Just as I expected . " He would not havo failed , perhaps , if we had not " expected " it .

We can slide down hill , but we must climb up . If a Brother has started down , his pace is suiely accelerated by the " disinterested " kick of his friends . If ho is climbing , a dozen will catch on to his coat-tails and make hia

climbing the more difficult . Wo shonld abhor thafc disposition thafc leads to the taking advantage of another in trade . It is unfriendly and un-Masonic . No man ever enjoyed the advantage gained by selfishly leading another

into a transaction whereby ho was profited and his friend defrauded . Such is not according to our teachings , and tho man guilty of such an act should be treated to severe discipline .

Disinterested friendship leads to peace and prosperity , happiness and contentment . Let us cultivate ifc for a little while . Ifc ia a plant that will pay for all the care bestowed upon it . The aroma ifc will shed about our lives will make the journey a foretaste of the peace and happiness of the c elestial world . —Selected .

Progressive Masonry.

PROGRESSIVE MASONRY .

MASONRY is said to be a progressive institution , but the proper meaning , or in what sense it is progressive , is nofc clearly understood . The mere making of Masons is not progress . When large numbers are

admitted to our sanctuaries we cannot boast that this is progress , and when our Masters boast of the many they have added to their list of members it is indeed an open question whether we are progressing .

In times of prosperity such as the present , when Masonry is fashionable and popular everywhere , and applicants are constantly knocking at onr doors , seeking to be admitted and become acquainted with our mysteries , greater care

than ever should be exercised , and no improper person shonld be admitted into the household of the faithful , to destroy or even jeopardise the peace , unity and harmony of our Fraternity , or we will retrograde rather than advance

or progress . We have too many Masters now who are bent only on making Masons—forsooth , add to their number—and even

on " highways and byways boast of the large number they have initiated in their respective Lodges , without due regard to their fitness for our mysteries , or whether they are fit and proper material for onr Temple .

The Grand Lodge of this State , some years ago , pnfc a stop to the wholesale manufacturing of Masons then prevailing , by permitting only five to come in atone tim n , and by making the candidates wait at least two weeks between each degree ; and now we find our " progressive " Masters

violating the law by working afc " specials" and manufacturing Masons at a wholesale rate—ten , fifteen , and twenty in one day—and this they call progress . Ifc ia

simply and clearly proselyting ; it is repugnant to every good sense and good taste in Masonry ; nay ifc is more , it is un-Masonic and against the spirit of the law of the Grand Lodge , enacted some years ago . It ia idle for the supercilious to say that if these candidates suit Blank Lodge , No . 0 , let them pass , and thafc if the members of Blank Lodge are satisfied with them ,